No One But Me
by YarningChick
Summary: In spite of everything he was, Baron's never found a girl that he was honestly attracted to. That is, until a mysterious beauty from his best friend's past makes a memorable appearance.
1. The Storm

Extra

Chapter One: The Storm

On an island beach, three young college students were enjoying the holiday from school. The girl sighed happily; her white one-piece swimsuit matching her pure-white towel. She rubbed a little more sunscreen on, as she only wished for a tan, not a burn. The dark-haired boy rolled off his blue towel to grin at her.

"Come on, Louise; this beach is begging to be searched for shells."

The golden-haired beauty giggled, and grabbed her little bag; just in case they found anything good. She looked over her shoulder, to the hypnotized man underneath an umbrella. He wasn't looking at them, but at the hypnotic waves of the ocean as his fingers brushed along his sketch pad, a small collection of colored pencils lying next to him. Unlike his companions, he wasn't dressed to get wet.

"Baron! Wanna come?"

The golden-haired man's head shot up, like he had been cruelly awakened from a dream. He looked at the couple, and guessed what they wanted.

"Thanks all the same, but I'm fine right here."

Louise scoffed.

"Come on, Baron; shouldn't your gentlemanly instincts be crying out against leaving your twin sister alone with a handsome man?"

Seeing her point, the young man sighed and closed his book, reasoning that his little sister's honor _was _more important than perfecting his interpretation of the ocean waves.

But they were so beautiful today… He sighed again as his best friend and little sister strode a little in front of him, occasionally grabbing a shell and debating on whether or not it was good enough to keep. Despite the fact that he was with them, he didn't truly feel like he was one of them.

'_You have no one to blame but yourself. Louise even offered to call one of her friends, so that we would all have someone to talk to.' _ The green-eyed man sighed, knowing that such an arrangement would have been fruitless, since his sister had already managed to convince him to date all of them at least once. But, they were all so similar, that he kept messing up their names, despite the flashcards Louise had made him practice with. Things were a lot simpler before his best friend worked up the courage to ask the golden-haired beauty out. Being a trio wasn't so bad, but he had never met a girl worth turning the act into a quartet.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

About an hour later, Baron suddenly looked up at the sky and stiffened.

"We need to leave immediately."

The lovey-dovey couple turned to look at him.

"What? Why?" the girl asked. Her brother pointed up to the sky, which was steadily darkening.

"We either leave immediately, or construct a shelter and hunker down until the upcoming storm blows over."

Machida paled.

"I vote for making a shelter."

"Not me!" Louise insisted. "The boat might get damaged, and then where would we be?"

It was up to Baron, the unofficial leader of the group. He smiled grimly.

"Father may kill me for this later, but I believe we can beat the storm home."

He had no idea how this decision would affect his life.

The trio ran back to the boat, stopping just long enough to grab their towels and personals. Jumping into the boat, Baron strapped on his life jacket and pulling out the keys to the boat while his companions took the passenger seats and strapped on their own life jackets.

The ride started out pleasantly enough, though a bit choppier than Baron would have liked. However, the clouds overhead seemed to disapprove that the boat thought it could outrun it, and the darkness of night seemed to speed closer. Before the trio realized it, they were inside the storm, and the waves were not being kind to them. Louise screamed as Machida held onto her with one arm and used the other to hang onto the railing. It rapidly became even worse, making Baron wonder if he would even live to regret his decision.

Then, without warning, a huge wave tossed the boat high on the edge of the water and then, tipped it over. Baron's head smacked soundly against the steering wheel as the boat began it's tumble, but he remembered to take a deep breath before the shockingly cold water engulfed his body. Being an ex-life guard, he knew he had to take this opportunity to breathe. But he knew that Louise might not have thought to take a breath before going under.

But he couldn't come to anyone's rescue; the darkness of night blinded him. Working himself free of the boat, he swam upwards, aided by his life jacket. He broke the water's choppy surface, and took in a breath. But he took in some water too. He bobbed to the surface again, and called out desperately.

"Louise?! Machida?!" He went under the waves again, but even under the water, he could hear his little sister scream back as she was thrown about among the waves.

"Baron!"

He came to the surface again, and tried to swim to his sister, but the waves seemed to be tearing him farther from her voice, and trying to flood his body with the icy water. The rapidly reddening water around him also did not help.

Just as Baron started to drift from consciousness, he heard Machida call out.

"Haru!! I need your help _now_!!"

The last thing Baron saw was a beautiful blue light, which he assumed was there to take him to see his mother, who had been gone for so long.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When Baron eventually woke up, he was on a soft surface, and a warm blanket had been firmly tucked around him. He could feel the ground underneath them moving as an engine purred. Opening his eyes, the first thing he saw was his sister's wonderful face, in peaceful slumber, easily illuminated by the new-risen sun. Hearing a familiar snore from summer camps of his childhood, the tawny-haired man looked down at his feet, where Machida was also sleeping like a baby. Both were also wrapped snuggly in blankets. Baron winced, touching the bandage that had been wrapped around his head.

All of them were on the cushions of a boat, and the morning rays were coming to life. He looked up, to see a strange figure at the helm of the small boat. It was a young lady, he could tell from the slim gloved fingers and long ponytail of chocolate that peeked out from underneath her woolen hat. She was in a slightly bulky overcoat and a thick blanket over her legs, to protect them from the wind chill. She adjusted course slightly, and yawned.

Suddenly, she seemed to somehow sense his attention as she turned to him and smiled. Her skin was pale and fair, but he couldn't tell much more since she was wearing huge sunglasses.

"First one up, I see." Loosening one leg slightly from the blanket, she gently kicked a small cooler toward him. "Pick something you like. Sorry, it's all cold."

A little puzzled, he sat up and worked one arm free of the blanket to see what she had. Which was a little bit of everything. Milk, drinkable yogurt, fruit juices… He grinned happily while pulling out an iced tea bottle and opened it.

"Just what the doctor ordered. Thank you, Miss."

She smiled, but wisely kept her eyes on the course in front of her.

"No problem. My name's Haru."

'_Haru…' _His mind gave a violent jerk.

"Machida-"

"-saw my boat, and managed to get my attention in time to save you," she said quickly. "I hope I didn't miss someone else, while I was fishing you guys out."

Baron shook his head slowly.

"No; it was just us three. How did you save us?"

She laughed a little tiredly.

"Believe me; it wasn't easy by any stretch of the imagination. I didn't catch your name?"

He blinked and flushed; surprised that he had forgotten his manners.

"Baron von Gikkingen. The young lady's my sister, Louise."

A smile lit up Haru's face.

"I suspected she was Machida's wonderful Louise. He had described her to nearly how long her toenails were, when we last met."

Baron stretched, and polished off his tea before standing up.

"Have you been driving since last night?"

"Yes."

He took the needed step and gently put his hand on the wheel.

"I can steer for a while. You must be exhausted."

Haru smiled, and slipped out of the driver's seat so the golden man could take over.

"I am, and thank you." She sat into his old seat with relief. She fished around the cooler and pulled out a small jug of milk.

"How-" Baron tried to ask, but was interrupted when Machida groaned and sat up.

"Man, I'm not going on a boat again for a long time."

Haru laughed while kicking the cooler close to him.

"After what you've been through, I can't blame you."

The dark youth looked at her and blinked.

"I'm sorry miss; do I know you?"

Before Baron could make a protest that the girl knew him, Haru laughed warmly. The golden man bit his tongue, finding strange peace in the sound.

"All it takes for you to forget me is changing my hairstyle? I'm disappointed in you, Machida. I thought I made a bigger impression than this."

Out of the corner of his eye, Baron could see the slim brunette raise one hand to take off her sunglasses. Determining that the coast was clear, he turned long enough to see the girl who had rescued him. His eyes widened in disbelief.

Haru was lovely, there was no doubt of it. But what he liked was that her beauty was simple, not the overdone score that was popular nowadays. What struck him the most were her unusual eyes.

One was a rich dark brown, while the other was a lovely light blue.

Machida nearly jumped out of the boat in shock, his eyes wide and unbelieving as Haru managed to grab the sleeve of his jacket, just in case he went overboard again.

"Haru?!" The volume of his voice was loud enough to wake up his girlfriend, who groaned groggily. The dark girl released Machida and smiled at the golden girl.

"Nice to see everyone's up. We should be getting to shore in half an hour."

Louise sat up and stared at her, making her brother remember that he needed to be watching the water, not the lovely young lady that had rescued them.

"Who are you?"

"Haru, an old acquaintance of your boyfriend." She grinned and held out her milk to the girl, who took it with confusion. "You're exactly how he described you. He mentioned that you like milk."

Louise nodded, and sipped from the bottle while Haru fished around for another one in the cooler. Machida was still staring at her.

"Haru, what happened to you?!"

She laughed at him.

"I changed my hairstyle, as I said before. You shouldn't be so surprised at seeing me again; you _did _call for me."


	2. The Mysterious Rescuer

Extra

Chapter Two: The Mysterious Rescuer

Machida kept staring at the slim girl, making Louise glower at the brunette while sipping her milk.

"And how do you know my boyfriend?"

Haru shrugged.

"He saved my life about a year ago. I wasn't watching the lights at a crossroads, and nearly got run over."

Baron chuckled.

"Sounds like a familiar story, Machida."

The dark youth flushed, and laughed uneasily while Louise perked up.

"Oh, yeah! He did the same thing for a cat once when we were walking home from school."

Machida flushed even harder, making Haru laugh.

"There are worse hobbies than saving lives. We got to talking later, and all he wanted to talk about was this wonderful girl that he was afraid to ask out, because he was friends with her twin brother." She looked up at Baron and grinned again, making his heart start doing gymnastics. "I told him if he was brave enough to save me, then he could handle you. I'm thrilled to see he got the courage to ask you out."

Convinced that the rescuer was no rival, Louise relaxed and pulled out a yogurt smoothie; her milk now gone. She giggled slightly.

"Dad's going to kill us when he finds out about the boat."

Baron shook his head.

"I'm betting he'll be so grateful we're alive, that he won't do more than ground us for a month."

Machida fished through his pockets, and pulled out a cell phone that had somehow managed to stay in his coat. He opened it up, and tried to turn it on.

"Blast. All the water ruined it."

Haru reached into her pocket and pulled out a slim silver phone. She handed it to him with a grin, which he returned.

"Thanks. Mom's probably worried sick." He called home, endured the screams and tears, and told his mother to meet him at the dock before passing the phone to Louise, who endured the same upon making her own phone call.

Haru had stretched a bit, and lay down on the cushioned seat in a tight ball for a short nap. A small smile was on her lips.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When Baron made berth, he could see his father and Machida's mother waving and desperately trying to get their attention. Not bothering to wait until the children could climb out of the boat, the parents jumped in with tears and cries, waking Haru. She moved to the back of the boat, and watched with contentment as the happy scene unfolded before her. Machida's mother left off kissing her son's face to look at her.

"Son, who's that?"

Her son squirmed a bit.

"That's Haru. She's the reason we're alive."

The middle aged woman lunged for the girl, who was surprised when the complete stranger wrapped her in warm embrace and cried into her shoulder. Machida watched with horror; knowing that no one had ever done that to Haru before.

"Thank you," the woman sobbed as the young girl awkwardly patted her back. "If my son was ever torn from me… I don't know what I'd do. He's all I have left."

Haru's mismatched eyes melted, and locked with Machida's. He smiled grimly, and nodded. Hesitantly, the girl wrapped her arms around the woman's torso and squeezed softly.

"It was my pleasure to return your son to you, Mrs. Mishuzi."

The woman stiffened slightly, and released the girl. Baron and Louise's father was directly behind Mrs. Mishuzi; the position of his hand saying that he had tapped the woman slightly, so he could also greet the young lady. His dark emerald eyes widened slightly, looking at her.

"Words can't express our gratitude, Miss Haru."

She smiled and bowed politely.

"No, but your faces can. I should probably leave so that _my _father doesn't worry about me."

Mr. Gikkingen came another step forward, and held her hands in his. Her eyes twitched slightly, but she kept a polite smile on her face.

"We owe you our children's lives."

"Actually, Machida saved my life about a year ago, so we're even."

Mrs. Mishuzi gasped.

"Why didn't you say anything, Machida?"

The boy coughed uncomfortably.

"Um… stuff."

Mr. Gikkingen squeezed Haru's hands a little tighter, still studying her face.

"I must ask, Miss Haru; do I know you?"

The girl laughed a little uneasily while reclaiming her hands.

"Afraid not. I can guarantee you that we've never met."

He sighed as everyone else started climb out of her boat. Baron looked at her a little longingly; trying to think of something to say before this strange and wonderful girl walked out of his life.

"Louise and I still owe you our lives. Is there anything we can do for you?"

Haru thought about it while turning her boat back on.

"Not that I can think of. But if you ever need to contact me, Machida knows how." She looked at the dark youth. "I still owe you one more favor, so I'll see you later."

"Haru!" Machida called out suddenly. "What did you do to Natoru, just out of curiosity?"

She giggled evilly as the boat started floating away from the harbor.

"I'm making him memorize the Complete Idiot's Guide to Performing Simple Tasks, cover to cover." Even above the roar of her engine, they could hear her wicked laughter as she faded into the distance. "He's still on the introductory page!"

Machida chuckled darkly.

"That book might be a little too advanced for him to understand."

His mother touched his face softly.

"Son, who's Natoru?"

The dark teenager flushed again.

"Um, he's one of her father's men. He got me into huge trouble with her father, which is why Haru owes me one more favor."

Mr. Gikkingen sighed.

"Either way, I wish Miss Haru could have stayed a little longer. We're taking you all out for brunch." _'Despite what she said, I am certain that I have seen that face before. But where?'_


	3. Baron's Intentions

Extra

Chapter Three: Baron's Intentions

Baron looked into his tea, hypnotized by the swirling steam that rose from his cup. A book was in his other hand, but it was lowered to his lap, with only his thumb to hold his place. Louise looked at him over her embroidery hoop.

"Hey bro; what's troubling you? You've been quiet for hours."

He sighed.

"Nothing's troubling me, exactly. I'm just… thinking about Haru."

She grinned.

"It was pretty lucky for us that she had been in the storm too."

"It was. However, I'm very put out with Machida."

"What?! He's the reason she knew we were in trouble!"

"I know that, but how come he never breathed a word about her before yesterday, and even then, Haru was the one that told me that she knew him?" He shook his head in irritation. "If I had known earlier that Machida was friends with such a fetching young lady, I would have called in the favors he owed me."

Louise was so stunned that she didn't notice that she had pricked her finger, or that the white fabric stretched in front of her was slowly gaining a dark red spot in the corner.

"Baron, are you saying that you want to pursue her? We don't even know her last name."

"Perhaps not, but I can't recall the last time a woman outside our family had caught my attention like this."

His sister blinked, and then sighed while reaching behind her; feeling around for the portable phone. She tossed it at her brother, who caught it on reflex.

"If she's so intriguing, then call in the favors Machida owes you."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Tick.

Tock.

Tick.

Tock.

Baron watched the pendulum in the old grandfather clock swing back and forth, in order to distract him from watching the face of the clock. It didn't work as well as he had hoped. The rays of dawn were crawling across the emerald carpet, and the portable phone was clenched hard in Baron's sweaty grip.

"_Machida, do you recall the thirty-seven favors you owe me?"_

_A heavy yawn echoed through the phone._

"_I didn't know you were keeping count. Man, how am I going to work off all of that?"_

"_Easy. I will count all of the favors you owe me as one, if you do one small favor for me in return."_

"_Name it."_

"_Haru's phone number."_

Tic. Tock.

Baron forced his gaze back on the pendulum while his sister approached him with a cup of tea.

"Drink this; you look like a ghost."

Numbly, he accepted the offering and began delicately sipping. Although his sister's tea blend couldn't hold a candle to his, it was still good.

_Silence followed his request._

"_Name something besides that."_

"_Come now; I heard her very specifically say that you could contact her again. Surely you have it."_

"_It's not a matter of having it; it's a matter of being under a maiming threat if I tell anyone about it. Haru's very busy on a regular basis; she won't have time for a relationship."_

"_Thank you, but I would prefer for her to personally tell me that. The number?"_

"_Baron, please listen to me. Her father's crazy; if he hears that you want to pursue a relationship, he'll take you away to his lair and never let anyone hear from you again!"_

"_Sounds to me like you were up late reading horror stories. I would be delighted to meet her father."_

"_NO! Baron, I can't let you go through with this! Haru's…" his friend's voice trailed off, like Machida was trying to think of a reason on the spot._

"_Yes? Please tell me why I shouldn't court Haru."_

_He could hear his friend breathing heavily._

"_I can't say it, directly. Just trust me."_

"_If I personally hear from Haru that she isn't interested in me, then I will leave her be. The number?"_

_Machida sighed tiredly._

"_I said I can't give it, but I can tell her about your intentions, and give her your number. She'll probably call you in the morning with her answer, and that's all I can promise."_

"_That will do just fine. Thank you."_

Baron sighed as the clock boomed ten. Louise had sat down next to him and rubbed his shoulder comfortingly.

"Maybe she's-" the girl was cut off as the phone in Baron's sweaty palm began to ring. He looked down, suddenly afraid to answer it. Louise rolled her eyes at him, and pulled the phone closer to his ear while pressing the 'on' button. The blonde man swallowed hard.

"Gikkingen residence, Baron speaking."

"Morning, Baron! It's Haru. I'm sorry if I called too early; I wasn't sure when you get up."

Blinking, he gripped the phone enough so that Louise could let go; the golden girl now grinning wickedly.

"I've been up since eight, actually. Early to bed, early to rise-"

"-makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. That applies to women too, you know." She giggled, making Baron lean back in the couch; thoroughly enjoying the sound.

"Machida said that you were interested in a relationship."

His heart heaved.

"I am. Are you?"

She sighed.

"I've been thinking about it. The way I see things, if Machida likes you enough to tell me about your intentions, it couldn't hurt to give it a shot. Are you doing anything today?"

With utter shock, Louise watched her older twin start throwing victory punches into the air with one fist as he struggled to contain himself with his voice; his eyes sparkling like faceted jewels.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Baron rolled carefully onto the right street; his green eyes searching. Initially, his father was planning on grounding both of his children for wrecking the boat beyond retrieval, but hearing that his son was planning on seeing their rescuer had instantly changed his tune.

"_Have a great time, son."_

His right pinky finger twitched; the only sign he gave to people outside the family that he was nervous. He had no idea about how Haru would react, seeing him like this. Finally, he spotted her on the fountain a couple yards away. She was dressed this time in a cream skirt and a green sleeveless top. Her mismatched eyes seemed to be glazed over as she silently turned a page in the thick book in her hands. She had chosen to pull her hair back in a half-ponytail, which suited her wonderfully. Grinning, he rolled up next to her.

"Care for a ride, my lady?"

She looked up, like she had been awakened from a dream. Her eyes went even wider as he opened the visor of his helmet so she could see his eyes. She laughed disbelievingly.

"I didn't think you were the motorcycling type, Baron," she said as she bookmarked her place and slipped the book into her purse.

He laughed, and rubbed the space between the handlebars affectionately, like he was petting a faithful dog. No one believed he was the motorcycling type, but since his father refused to let him take sky-diving lessons, a Harley was a close second. Baron had always longed to do something daring, but was willing to work with what life served him.

"My noble steed. Doesn't talk much, but one learns to live with her growl."

The brunette laughed as he gave her a white helmet, the one Louise usually wore when she went riding with him. Looking at the bike carefully while snapping the helmet in place, she decided on riding with both legs on one side, so as to not expose her legs to the world. She wrapped her arms around his back and squeezed enough so as not to fall off when Baron took off down the road, trying hard not to gloat.


	4. The Date

Extra

Chapter Four: The Date

Baron paid for the two ice cream cones, and accepted the one that Haru had been holding for him. She looked at her own cone skeptically before taking a taste, making Baron leave off his polite licking.

"I'm sorry, Haru; were you on a diet?"

She blinked, and laughed nervously.

"What? Oh, no. If anything, people are telling me to gain a little weight. I'm just not used to this stuff."

Baron stared at her.

"How on earth could you _not_ be used to ice cream?"

She shifted uncomfortably.

"We don't have processed foods at home. Everything's fresh." She took another small lick, obviously enjoying the rare treat. "But a little processed food couldn't hurt. What's this flavor again?"

"Orange sherbet. Where did you say you live again?"

Her eyes flicked with worry.

"Out in the country. Father made it clear that he didn't want me to tell anyone where. He doesn't like visitors very much."

Baron saw the warning signs, and changed the topic as they sat down on his parked bike.

"Well, where did you go to school?"

"Private tutors. Where did you go?"

"Around here. I'm in my second year of college. I hope to be a lawyer, with time."

The brunette smiled softly.

"I bet you'd be good at it. The world needs more honest lawyers."

He stared at her; stunned that she hadn't made a bad lawyer joke. Haru's mismatched eyes faded out slightly, and she stared out into the empty space in front of her.

"Politics are a risky field to take on, especially nowadays."

A little intimidated by the look in her eyes, Baron asked another question.

"What do you hope to do with the rest of your life?"

She sighed.

"Take over my father's position, marry a great man, have a kid and raise it to follow in my footsteps. That fate was decided for me before I was born, but Father should be grateful that it's what I want anyway. If it wasn't, I could cause all sorts of problems for him."

He quirked an eyebrow at her.

"What does your father-"

"Baron!"

The couple looked over their shoulders to see a redheaded man around their own ages running toward them. The tawny-haired youth suppressed a groan; catching Haru's attention as the intruder bent over next to the bike, gasping for breath. He finally looked up, his eyes slightly glazed out from all the running.

"I… want… a rematch!"

The tawny youth fought the urge to growl.

"Sanoske, I'm a little busy at the present, as you can clearly see," Baron said with strained patience as he gestured to the slim girl next to him. Haru cocked her head at the intruder as he looked at her and blushed.

"What was it you wanted a rematch in?"

The boy's mouth opened and closed like a fish; his face getting redder.

"Fencing," he squeaked. Haru sharply turned to her date; a wide smile on her face.

"You didn't mention that you fenced!"

Baron blushed, pleased that his unusual talent was attracting her interest so strongly.

"I was the captain of the fencing team in high school, and I still am of the college team. That's why I'm on a scholarship. Just like my father was when he was my age."

The brunette wasn't the only one following a father's footsteps. Haru grinned even wider.

"Could you show me?"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Baron strained to keep his attention on his opponent, and not the cute brunette seated in the bleachers. Sanoske was having even more difficulty than the blonde; his blush nearly melting the metal mesh of the fencing mask.

"Kindly keep your eyes on me, Sanoske."

The boy jerked violently, nearly turning his back on the girl in order to keep his focus. Haru giggled as Baron made a lunge, his opponent clumsily stepping out of the way. With three strokes the battle was over. The redhead was laying on his back, gasping from the impact his body had made with the ground, Baron's thin sword tip at his heart.

"I was certain that you would have practiced more, to issue another challenge so quickly."

"I did! But… your girlfriend…"

Baron blushed at the words as Haru approached the two and kneeled next to the defeated man.

"Are you trying to say that I'm a distraction?" she asked the redhead, smiling mischievously.

"No, no! Well, maybe," Sanoske fumbled as Haru picked up his weapon. She stood up, and expertly tested the weight.

"Everyone gets nervous, Sanoske. You just have to learn to ignore it, or get eaten alive."

The blonde youth couldn't help but notice that she hadn't protested at being seen as his girlfriend. Grinning, she took a few steps away from Baron and pulled a standard stance.

"En garde, monsieur."

The victor froze for a second. Did Haru honestly expect him to attack her? She smiled at him, making his knees go weak. He blinked, and suddenly his sword was flying through the air, and Haru's sword tip was lying against his heart. His hand stung horribly, making him wonder what had just happened. Sanoske's jaw had fallen to the floor in shock, wide eyes still locked on the brunette, who was smiling wickedly.

"I've been fencing since I was four, Baron. Are you going to really fence, or stare at me?"

'_A girl that fences?! That's it. The battle's over.' _The blonde managed to make his vocal chords work.

"I like both options, actually."


	5. Cornelius

Extra

Chapter Five: Cornelius

Louise, her father, and her boyfriend, looked up as her twin closed the front door and came into the parlor. Baron was grinning happily, his hair slightly mussed by wearing the helmet.

"Well?" the golden girl asked. Her brother smiled wider.

"I don't care if she's two years older than me; I'm completely smitten. Not only is Haru interested in philosophy and politics, but she _fences_!"

His father whistled appreciatively.

"If I had been aware of that, I would have asked her for a duel when I had the chance."

Baron sat on the couch next to his sire.

"Believe me, Father; she would have given you a run for your money. She beat me four out of five times."

Louise gaped while Machida angrily downed his tall glass of tea.

"I'm not shocked. I saw her duel her father once, when I met him. She's got mad skills." If anything, he was impressed that Baron had managed to beat her at all. His girlfriend looked at him.

"Why did you meet her dad?"

Machida flushed while Baron explained.

"Haru said that her father really wanted Machida to court her, and had been quite forceful with his judgment. That's why she knew so much about you, sister. Machida had treated her to a half-hour speech about you, trying to say that he wasn't interested. So Haru let him go."

Machida relaxed a little, though his eyes were still a little wild and haunted. Baron suddenly turned to his father.

"I just remembered something. I mentioned your first name was Cornelius, and she went a little crazy. She wants to know if you remember a woman by the name of Naoko."

The elder man's eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open slightly. His dark green eyes seemed to fade into dimensions unknown.

"Of course. Haru _has_ to be her daughter, with that face."

"Dad?" Louise asked, getting worried. The man seemed to break free from his spell.

"Suffice it to say, if I had had my way when I was your age, children, Naoko would have been my wife. Not that I regret the time I spent with Emily, but…" he sighed, remembering. "Naoko disappeared the day before I was going to propose. We searched everywhere for her, but it was like she had fallen off the face of the earth. About a week after she disappeared, I got a letter from her, telling me to forget about her and to find a nice young lady to raise a family with, because we could never have a future together."

Machida nearly dropped his glass, he was so busy staring at the man.

"She told me once that her mother had been in love with another man when she married Haru's father, but I had no clue it was you."

Cornelius jerked.

"Did Haru tell you how soon her parents were married?"

Machida shifted around, his eyes getting more and more wild.

"She didn't mention numbers or specific times, but she made it clear that her parents were married pretty fast."

Baron's father stood up, his anger beginning to build.

"If she was still in love with me, then why did she marry Haru's father? Naoko was never the type to do stupid things."

Machida started breathing heavily.

"Let's just say he wouldn't take no for an answer."

Cornelius took slow measured steps toward the youth, and firmly grabbed hold of his shoulders.

"Did you meet her mother?"

"No. She died when Haru was seventeen." He tried to squirm away from his father's grasp. "Look; if you want more answers about Haru's parents, you'll have to talk to her. I only knew her for about a day's worth, and most of that was away from her."

Cornelius dropped the boy and turned in order to nod at his son. Baron nodded back, and clicked open his cell phone. Machida looked at him, confused.

"Baron, what are you doing?"

"Calling Haru. She gave me her number."

Machida's mouth flapped open and closed for a while, but sank back into the couch, looking sullen. Louise looked at him curiously.

"It shouldn't be surprising, since the date apparently went so well."

Baron watched his best friend while the phone rang in his ear. The last time Machida had gotten even half this nervous was when someone did all those pranks on him last year. Baron could never forget that time, since the strange incidents had left him the dubious owner of 238 lacrosse sticks, where Machida had broken his one stick earlier. Come to think of it, Machida had never fully explained what had happened that time either.

The phone finally picked up.

"Hey, it's me, but not really. If I haven't answered the phone by now, I probably got commandeered by my father or his advisors for another boring meeting. Those stupid things last forever, but if you leave a message, I'll get back to you as soon as possible." A beep followed her voice.

"Haru, it's me. My father _is _the Cornelius your mother knew before marrying your father. He has many questions for you, and frankly, so do the rest of us, after hearing his version of what happened. Machida's not giving us very many details."

His father gently removed the phone from his son's grasp.

"We don't care how late you call, as long as you do it soon. We'll be waiting."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Louise pulled a blanket across her father and brother, as they kept their vigil next to the phone. Machida had gone home hours ago, and if this week wasn't a vacation, she'd be worried about how her brother would do in his classes, if he had stayed up the entire night beforehand. Tomorrow was Sunday anyway, so even their father didn't have a reason to call it a night.

The young lady sighed, and tried to focus on her embroidery. She didn't have to stay up as well, but considering how important the call was to her father, she owed him this small bit of support.

Five minutes before the clock struck three, the phone rang. But instead of reaching for the portable phone, Cornelius pressed the speaker button, so everyone could hear the brunette.

"Hello, Haru."

"Hello, Mr. Gikkingen." She sighed. "If I had known earlier that you were Mom's wonderful Cornelius, I would have said something earlier."

"I take it she talked about me often?"

"An average of once or twice a day. If Father weren't already crazy, he would have been driven so by her talk. I'm betting you want to know what happened to her."

"Dearly. Why did she leave without a true goodbye? Where has she been? Who is your father?"

"Those are… very excellent questions. And they deserve to be answered to your face. I wasn't planning on sharing my family's story, but I think you deserve to know. Can I come to your place to spill the beans?"

"Absolutely. Do you know where we live?"

"I was expecting you to tell me."

"Good. I have one more question for you, Haru, and this one you can answer right now."

"What?"

"How would you like to meet your grandparents?"


	6. Haru's Secret

Extra

Chapter Six: Haru's Secret

Baron studied the old couple across the coffee table, as they shamelessly looked out the window and to the driveway; a deep and terrible hunger in their eyes. The college student had met the couple before on numerous occasions, since Mrs. Yoshioka had been his piano teacher and he had been a shadow to Mr. Yoshioka in his childhood. He had been puzzled that they had a daughter a long time ago, since they never talked about her, nor did his father. But as he saw the naked longing in the old couple's eyes, he realized that they were just trying to make the pain bearable. Even Machida's mother knew about Naoko, being her best friend, which was why the von Gikkingens and Mishuzis were so close. Machida and his mother were also in the parlor, awaiting the brunette's arrival. After the Mishuzis, Haru had firmly said no more.

As he studied Mr. Yoshioka's graying hair, he could see the genes responsible for Haru's glorious chocolate locks. Same went for Mrs. Yoshioka's eyes and Haru's brown one. It appeared that her appearance was completely reliant on her mother's side of the family. What did her father look like?

Five minutes after Baron thought he could stand the tension no longer, an elegant periwinkle Porsche pulled in front of the house. The Yoshiokas burst from their seats and nearly broke the front door down in order to greet the grandchild they never knew even existed.

The von Gikkingens watched through the window, in order to give the estranged family a moment. Haru climbed out of her car only to disappear underneath her grandparents' arms as they hugged and kissed her. Baron could vaguely see one of Haru's slim arms reach around her grandmother's neck and squeeze gently. When they finally pulled away, the people watching through the window could clearly see her left arm in a sling, and a long cut on one cheek. She appeared to be trying to soothe her grandparents as she reached into the car again to open the trunk. Haru tried to grab what was within one-handed, but her grandfather firmly took hold of the bulky package, which was big enough to hide a thirteen year old inside.

Mrs. Mishuzi gently guided her granddaughter to the house while her husband threw the package over one shoulder and followed. The people inside the house gathered around the front door in order to greet Haru as she crossed into the threshold.

"Haru, what happened to you?" Baron managed to ask first, only to be echoed through everyone else as the elder woman steered the younger toward the couch. The young brunette smiled a little evilly, making the blonde's heart start skipping beats.

"Father found out I was going to see my grandparents, and tried to order me to stay home. If you think _I _look bad, you should see him. He was still getting sewn back together when I left."

"You beat up your own father?" Cornelius asked, incredulous.

"I challenged him for trying to stop me. It was a civilized duel, at least on my half. We usually duel when we disagree, and we disagree on a lot of things." She beckoned for her grandfather to set the large package next to her, which he did gratefully. The young lady started rummaging through it. "I know you asked for pictures, but my father hates cameras. He thinks they steal souls, and the painted portraits were a bit too big for me to bring. I hope this is a close second." She pulled out a frame, and held it so everyone could see it.

Despite Haru's words, it looked like a photograph. It was a beautiful woman, in her late thirties. She had short red hair, brown eyes like Haru's one brown one, and a sad smile on her lips. The woman's face was also very similar to Haru's. Baron leaned a bit closer, stunned to see that the portrait was actually composed entirely of tiny embroidery stitches.

"Did you do this, Haru?"

She nodded.

"Shortly after Mom died, so I could still see her face."

Machida was making strangled noises in the corner.

"Is that _exactly _how you knew her, Haru?"

She raised an eyebrow at him, amused.

"Yes, it is. Is there something you would like to say?"

Machida opened and closed his mouth like a fish, fuming. She laughed at him.

"Relax. I'm going to tell them everything."

Louise shook her head at her boyfriend.

"Haru, why does he go strange whenever we talk about you?"

The bruised girl giggled evilly.

"Bad memories. You'll find out soon enough."

Baron whistled, still impressed by her interpretation of Naoko.

"Is there anything you can't do?"

The brunette didn't hesitate.

"Dance."

Everyone laughed.

"No, I'm serious. I've had thirty-three instructors, out of which arose fifty-six broken bones. Father made a punishment out of dancing with me, if someone really irritates him, besides me." She set the portrait aside and carefully took out what was making the bulk of the package. Her grandmother and Baron helped ease it out of its imprisonment, and unfolded it. Everyone stared, amazed.

"This was Mom's masterpiece. I thought you would all like to see it."

It was a large quilt, one that seemed to go in a spiral pattern. Near the middle, everyone could see a redheaded baby. By going in a circle, everyone could see the baby morph into a cute little girl, and then an elegant young lady. Around the girl, scenes from an ordinary life passed by. Cornelius delicately touched the part where the young lady was dancing with a blonde man, both wearing matching blue outfits.

"That one was from our prom. She was also sort of a bad dancer, until you gave her the right partner."

Haru sighed sadly.

"She only danced with Father once. I had always assumed that she left his legs broken on purpose."

Everyone looked at the end of the spiral, a little confused as to why the story in the quilt ended with a large blue circle.

"This says what happened to her before she disappeared. We're here to find out what happened afterwards."

Haru nodded.

"I know." She sighed. "This is going to be a little difficult for me to explain. My father's family is very old and very powerful. Whatever the head of the family decides it wants, it gets. One day, when Father was out looking around on the streets, he saw Mom, and decided he wanted her. That night, he sent his minions to her home and kidnapped her."

Mrs. Yoshioka interrupted.

"But she was in her room the night she vanished! We were just down stairs; we would have heard something like a scuffle."

"Under ordinary circumstances, I'm certain that you would have." She sighed again, and stood up. "I better show everyone what I really look like before I continue the story. It won't make sense to anyone except Machida unless I do."

While everyone gave her funny looks, the young girl narrowed her eyes and concentrated. No one noticed anything at first, but then Baron noticed that her ears were a bit pointier than he thought they were, and her arms were a bit hairier. Then her face started to change shape.

Before everyone's amazed eyes, Haru began to shrink, and the end of a tail peaked out from underneath her skirt while her hands morphed into paws. When she was done, there was a neat little brown cat standing on her hind feet, and dressed like a human. She gave everyone a neat one-handed curtsy, since her left arm was still in a sling.

"It's a little late for a proper introduction, but I am Princess Haru of the Cat Kingdom."


	7. Naoko's Fate

Extra

Chapter Seven: Naoko's Fate

The lovely brown cat hopped back onto her seat on the couch, and gravely studied the faces of her companions. Her sad mismatched eyes trailed to Baron.

"I wouldn't blame you, if you never wanted to see me again. Like Machida once said; even if I'm a royal, I'm still a cat."

His green eyes slowly trailed from her to his best friend, the only one not shocked by Haru's identity.

"You _knew._"

Machida snorted.

"Of course I knew. Why else would I flip out on the boat, seeing her as a human?! Her crazy father learned that I saved her life at a crossroads and sent an imbecile to ask if I was interested in marrying Haru after they drowned me in cat gifts. The little idiot ran off after I said I wasn't seeing anyone, and told the king that I wanted to become Haru's husband."

His mother gasped and looked at the cat in question.

"But he's a human!"

The princess shrugged.

"So was Mom, but things like that don't stop Father, and our kingdom doesn't have divorce, even if Father would have allowed it. I got a message from my father afterwards when I was on a political mission, saying that he had a surprise waiting for me when I got home. Knowing Father's quirks, I ran back and found out that he had kidnapped Machida on my behalf. Before Mom died, she made me promise if I took a human mate, which the royal line must always do, thanks to an ancient law, it would be with the man's consent, which is why Father sent someone for Machida and not Mom. And after hearing about Louise and how his mother's heart would break if he was torn from her, I told Father to take him home. He said I was crazy and refused, so I challenged him to a duel over the matter. Obviously I won, or Machida would have gone missing a year ago. Before sending Machida home, I granted him permission to call on me for two favors; one for saving my life, and another for what had happened to him afterwards. That was really how I found you all in the storm, and managed to save all three of you."

Baron was stunned. Hesitantly, he reached over and pulled Haru onto his lap and started scratching her ears. She purred with pleasure. Machida's mother had renewed her death grip on her son, new fear on her face.

"Thank you for letting me keep my son, Haru. But what happened to your mother?"

The cat sighed.

"She was taken to the Cat Kingdom. It's very different from the world you know, just for the fact that we don't have night. Mom used to take me to the portal tower when I was a kitten, so I would know what stars looked like outside of books. There's also a strange spell on the land. If a human feels comfortable in the Cat Kingdom, it will trigger a reaction that slowly changes them into a cat. And if they don't leave the kingdom by the next human sunrise after the reaction, they will stay as a cat. Machida was lucky that I came home early, because his transformation would have been complete and unbreakable if I had been five minutes slower in getting him out of there. Mom spent _eighteen_ _years_ in the Cat Kingdom, and she died as a human. She was never really happy, in all my memories of her, and I can't really blame her." Haru sighed again.

"She kept trying to kill herself, when she was pregnant with me. Father thought he was being generous in allowing her to write Cornelius a farewell letter, and didn't care much for her attitude. Finally, he told her that if she just brought me into the world, she could do whatever the heck she wanted; he didn't care. Father had been married seven times before her, and she had been the only wife that had come this close to giving him an heir."

"How old is your father?" her grandfather said suddenly. Haru cringed, knowing that he wasn't going to like her answer.

"How old are _you_?"

"Sixty-three."

"He's older than you."

The man exploded in fury.

"Where is he?!"

"Probably still in the infirmary, for all the wounds I gave him for trying to keep me home."

He growled while sitting back down.

"I hope he has a lot of scars from you."

"Don't worry; he does. But you can't really see them, since he's a longhair. Mom didn't even want to bring me into the world, because she was scared that I would be just like Father. Except that I was born a human, like her. Father got scared as to what this would mean, since it wouldn't do for a human to rule over his people, but then I shifted into a cat. For the first eight years of my life, I had no control over what form I was in, and constantly shifted." She got off Baron's lap to resume her spot. She began to grow again, and her body started to shift into a human. But somewhere in the middle, she stopped shifting, leaving her as a half-cat.

"This is my favorite shape, and what I consider to be my true form. Natori, an advisor for my father, says that I can shift because Mom resisted the kingdom's magic throughout being pregnant with me, and we haven't found a better reason than that. The first time Mom held me, she decided not to kill herself. She wanted to make sure that I would grow up with a good role model and that I would know what happens when people with power are selfish. Even if she hadn't made me promise what she did, I would have sent Machida home anyway. I don't want my husband to hate me the way Mom hated Father. He never even said he was sorry for tearing her away from everything she had ever loved. When I take the throne, I'm planning on making a lot of changes. I love both of my parents, but I'm not blind to their flaws."

Her grandparents stared at her, as did everyone else.

"We had hoped, so many times, that wherever Naoko was, she was happy there. But this…"

A musical beeping distracted everyone. Blinking, Haru pulled out her cell phone and flipped it open before holding the device to her ear.

"It's me." After listening a while, the princess's mismatched eyes narrowed, and she slightly exposed her sharpened cat teeth in hostility. "_Father did what?!_"

"What?" Louise asked in confusion as Haru started growling, one padded hand covering her face in disgust.

"For crying out loud… all right, I'll be there in a few seconds." She clicked her phone shut and stood up. "Sorry to run out like this, but Father blew up a tower again, and I need to go calm him down."

"Whoa, wait! I still have questions for you, young lady!" Baron's father reached out as she stepped outside the circle of listeners that had formed around her.

"I'll have to come back later, then. Father gets really excited when he blows something up. I need to figure out where he keeps stashing all those explosives." Facing a wall, she raised her unbound arm to her chest and flung it outward. Like magic, a blue circle grew in front of her; the radiating light flooding the room. To save his eyes, Baron raised one hand and looked down at the quilt spread smoothly on the floor. Or more specifically, the blue circle that marked the end of the life quilt.

"I'll call when I'm done with Father." With that, she jumped through the hole, which began to close behind her. Without thinking twice, Baron suddenly ran for the hole and dove through it, nearly losing his feet as the portal closed behind him.


	8. The Cat King and Kingdom

Extra

Chapter Eight: The Cat King and Kingdom

Haru stepped neatly onto the polished tiles of her father's throne room, only to be knocked to the ground. She yelped as Baron hurriedly got off her.

"Sorry about that." He helped the princess to her feet. She struggled to ask why he had followed her, but realized that she didn't have the time for it.

"I'll deal with you later. I need to get to Father right now." Grabbing his hand, she nearly dragged him to a frantic robed cat.

"It was the portal tower, Highness! He's trying to stop you."

Growling again, she let go of Baron's hand and ran down the hall, with Baron and the other cat following. The sleeves of the cat's robes waved around the feline's face as he looked at the human through the corner of his eye.

"I'm Natori, the head advisor to the king. Who are you?"

"Baron von Gikkingen, not-quite boyfriend to Haru."

The light gray cat sighed with relief as the princess grabbed the offered megaphone from a servant and headed outdoors.

"I hope you're planning on a short courtship, young man. Princess Haru can't challenge her father for the throne until she gets married, and her father's too eccentric to stay in power for much longer. We can't afford…" he left off as Haru started shouting through the megaphone at what looked like a smoking building in the middle of a destroyed maze.

"Father! I'm home! Get over here so we can talk!"

Vaguely, Baron could see a small grayish ball of fluff on the edge of the roof of what remained of the tower. At hearing Haru's voice, the fluff stopped climbing to the top, and looked over at her. His daughter gave the megaphone back and started running down the stairs and on top of the remaining walls of the labyrinth while her father eased his way through one of the windows. Not one to be left behind on the action, Baron started following again, with Natori directly behind him.

"Take the next left," the old cat panted, and then started muttering to himself. "I'm getting too old for this."

Baron did as told, but he was still a long way behind Haru, who had met her father at the base of the tower. He was leaning over himself gasping terribly. He was so covered with bandages that the tawny human could hardly tell what the color of his fur was.

"Did I stop you?"

"No. They know who I really am."

He growled.

"How many times have I told you?! Humans can't ever find out about our kingdom! You've read about what happened when they knew!"

"There's a huge difference between easing some heartache and making a speech on international TV. Not only have I met my grandparents, I'm going to keep seeing them, as long as they want me to. So there!"

He was about to make a comeback, but Baron and Natori had just entered the small enclosure. The purple-robed cat passed out on the ground, but Baron had chosen to balance himself on one of the pillars in between two openings as he regained his breath; studying the Cat King. He was old, even a human could tell. His long light gray fur had a touch of lavender to it, and he had engraved golden armbands, one on each arm, over the bandages. Instead of a crown, the disheveled-looking cat had a purple gem on his brow, which appeared to have a pupil that acted the same as his regular eyes, which were large to the point of bulging out of his skull. They were mismatched like Haru's, but instead of a left brown eye, he had a red one. Both eyes looked like he was trying to look at the sides of his head, like a cow or plant-eater. Apparently the right blue eye was a distinguishing family trademark. The king blinked; a little confused as to why there was a human in his kingdom. The old longhair turned to his daughter.

"Who's he, babe?"

Haru looked at Baron, wondering how to word this. She walked over to the human and linked her arm through his, looking into his eyes. He smiled warmly and nodded at her. Grinning happily, the princess turned to the old king.

"This is my boyfriend, Baron von Gikkingen."

The king blinked, and then looked at his paw.

"Gikkingen; where have I heard that name before?"

"Your late wife was acquainted with my father." The tawny lad stood tall and erect, waiting for when the old cat would remember his old rival for Naoko's heart. The king thought for a minute.

"Nope, not ringing any bells." He walked forward a bit in order to shake paws with the young man. With a shock, Baron realized that he now had a paw like a cat's. Haru shook her head at him.

"Already, Baron?" She made a portal appear behind them, and grabbed his other paw. "I'll bring him by again, Father!"

"Do so!" he shouted after her as Baron fell through the portal again, and landed on his parlor floor. Haru had landed on her feet, for being more used to going between worlds. Louise ran into the room, and gaped as her brother's tail snaked its way back into his body. Baron felt his face with one hand as the fur shrank back into his skin as Haru kneeled next to him.

"You should feel better in about a minute. Why on earth did you follow me?"

The blonde youth took a minute to steady his breath.

"I… I'm…" Drat, why won't the words come to him?! Haru's eyes softened, and she kissed his cheek softly as she shifted back into a human, making him blush with pleasure.

"If you like me enough to follow me into a vast unknown, despite the fact I'm not a true human, something tells me that I won't be getting rid of you anytime soon. Not that I'm complaining."

That was it. He was scared of losing her. Sure, they had only had one date, but that one date, along with her wonderfully kind heart, was enough to seal the deal for the young man. Showing more bravery than he thought he was capable of, he leaned forward enough to softly kiss her on the lips. Haru's eyes widened, and she appeared to be paralyzed. He reluctantly pulled away, and held her cheek tenderly with one hand.

"You may be a cat, Haru; but you're my kind of cat. I wouldn't mind becoming one for you at all, if that was what you wanted."

Neither of them had noticed that everyone else in the house was watching them; they were lost inside a world of their own.

'_I actually found one? A wonderful man that not only wants to be by my side, but can handle everything that comes with it?' _She had dated many men in the year since winning the duel over who controls her love life, her or her father. Yes, she wanted to get married. She wanted to try to fix the damage her father and forefathers had done. Her mother hadn't been the only human kidnapped and forced to marry into the royal family; just the most recent one.

There was so much good she could do for the kingdom, but her paws were, for the most part, tied until she could get married. Even her father wanted her to take the kingdom, so he could spend more time golfing and playing around. She was already making most of the important decisions for the kingdom, but she couldn't serve the kingdom to her fullest potential without a husband at her side. But she so longed for a romance like the one her mother had described with Cornelius, or her own human grandparents. So many times, the brunette had thought she had found the right one, but then they turned their backs on her when she told them what she really was, or they were so turned on by her wealth that she no longer wanted anything to do with them.

The young princess had always erased their memories of her, so that they wouldn't be able to tell anyone about her kingdom. She hadn't counted Machida's calling on her on Baron's behalf as his second favor, since she and the kingdom was starting to get a little desperate. Throwing the kidnapping tradition out the window was slowing down everyone's plans. She had been so scared that she would have to erase Baron's memories of her when he found out the truth about her, but… she _hadn't_ needed to. Not even a meeting with her father, which apparently still gave Machida nightmares, was enough to deter him.

'_If I had known earlier that Louise's twin brother was so cool, I would have asked Machida to hook us up earlier. It's somehow fitting; that our parents' offspring should fall for each other.'_

Beaming, she kissed him back.

"I think we should try to date longer than a day, but I'm definitely interested in your offer, Mr. Gikkingen."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

This was the original ending for this story. But my muse came back with her sledgehammer, and said that people would want to know how the issues between the Cat King and Cornelius would get solved. So more of this one's on the way.


	9. Evil Plannings

Extra

Chapter Nine: Evil Plannings

With amazement, Natori watched the royal fiancé gracefully twirl the princess underneath his fingers, almost like she was a ballerina. The brunette, in her half-feline form, had long lost her look of astonishment, to be replaced by one of wonder. It was hard to keep the musicians from breaking off the song, since they were also in denial that there was, in fact, a living person that could teach Princess Haru to dance gracefully. If a complete stranger walked into the room, they never could have guessed that the princess had ever been viewed as clumsy.

Even the king, who was standing next to the advisor, was dumbstruck.

'_Drat. Too bad this guy couldn't have given my wife a lesson or two before she died.' _But that didn't matter anymore; as long as his little girl got married soon, that was the important thing.

The dance ended with a flourish, the tawny half-cat tenderly kissing his betrothed while she was still being held in a dip.

"There. I believe _I've _won this bet, Haru," he whispered against her soft lips. She blushed happily, her eyes twinkling with starlight.

"Looks like you have. My reign of terror is over now, I suppose."

"At least on the dance floor," Baron corrected, allowing her to stand on her own feet. She giggled, and suddenly noticed her shell-shocked father. Feeling a bit smug, she linked arms with her husband-to-be.

"And you said I was un-teachable."

The Cat King suddenly woke up from his own thoughts, and came forward to hug his daughter and future-son-in-law.

"That was nothing short of a miracle, babe. So, tomorrow's the big day, isn't it?"

The coupled nodded, beaming happily.

"That's right," Haru said, rubbing her cheek on Baron's shoulder. "Louise is really excited about it."

The king blinked.

"Who?"

The tawny cat cocked his head.

"My twin sister. She's been looking forward to the wedding, as is my father."

The king started choking.

"Hey! You didn't tell them the truth, did you?!"

Baron nodded.

"They both know how to keep a secret, if that's what you mean. We invited Machida and his mother as well, and Haru's grandparents."

The large longhair started going into convulsions.

"They can't come!"

Haru stood up a little straighter; a challenge present in her mismatched eyes.

"Father, if I have to shave you and break your legs and arms in order for my grandparents to be at my wedding, then I'll do it. They've missed out on enough, and I _will _have them present and accounted for, or else."

The king flinched, and held a paw to a tender spot that still hadn't recovered from his last duel with the headstrong princess. His heart started to pound in dread.

"I-well-that is… fine! They can come; they can all come!" He turned on his heel and started marching away. "But they had better keep a good distance from me at all times!"

Baron chuckled as the curtain billowed from the king's hasty exit.

"He still doesn't have a clue, does he?"

Haru started giggling again, but now there was an undercurrent of evilness to it.

"Nope. He's always been clueless."

"Highness!" Natori said, completely shocked. The princess laughed off the advisor's worry as she escorted her beloved to his home world one last time.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Cornelius was pacing the living room when the lovebirds burst in through a portal. The gold and gray haired man looked at the two as they began to shift into human forms. The man sighed, and embraced the two.

"To think; these will be the last hours I'll see my boy as a human."

Baron smiled softly while pulling away.

"It's for the best, Father. I'm not letting a girl _this _wonderful get away from me."

Haru blushed happily, but then the look faded.

"Dad, I'm not sure this is the best idea. I don't want you and my father to get into an ugly fight over Mom."

Cornelius sighed sadly, thinking about the life he could have led with his dear _Naoko_.

"What will happen, will happen, Haru. I suppose you two should be grateful for how things turned out; if I had my way when I was your age, you two would be siblings."

Baron shuddered at the thought, remembering clearly that his fiancé was two years older than him. Haru pulled a disgusted face; obviously finding the idea as appealing as her beloved.

"Please Father; just stick to the plan, and the Cat King will get everything that's coming to him," Baron implored. His father sighed, and nodded reluctantly.

He had been looking forward to this day since Haru had told them the truth, five months before.


	10. A Wedding At Last

Extra

Chapter Ten: A Wedding at Last

The Cat King blew on his gem once more rubbing it along his arm, to be sure that it was shining in the sunlight. He smiled smugly while placing the crown on his head, feeling the magic link him to it.

Today was the day his dear troublesome daughter would finally be married. Well, it had certainly taken her long enough to find someone; he himself had been married for two years to his first wife, when he was Haru's age. He shuddered, thinking about Nuki's piercing shriek. That woman had quite a pair of lungs, before he slipped something special into her drink one day. After that, she was as silent as the grave, although her constantly flapping jaw said that she wasn't finished yelling at him yet.

The king sighed as he walked down the hall to the throne room, where the wedding would take place. Along the walls were portraits of each of his wives. Coming to the last painting, he stopped for a second, his gaze distant.

Naoko was the only royal mate, in all of Cat Kingdom's history, to resist the transformation indefinitely. He had often wondered what she would have looked like as a cat, but eventually had to come to terms with the woman's will of iron. Naoko had been different from his other wives from the moment he had first seen her. The redhead's beautiful hair had entranced him, as had her playful smile as she joked with her best friend.

Well, she hadn't been one to keep shrieking about not wanting to marry him, like the others had done; Naoko had been a woman of action. It had taken four cats to subdue her, when all the others had only required one or two.

And when he found out she was pregnant…

He sighed, remembering the desperate struggle he had undergone to ensure that his wife wouldn't follow the example of her predecessors and kill herself before the child could be born.

And his precious Haru, who would forever bear the mark of her mother's refusal to give up the life she had loved so dearly.

The Cat King growled, and turned away from Naoko's portrait to keep walking. What was with these human girls anyway? Didn't he give them all countless treasures, costly clothes, and everything else a queen could possibly dream of? What was so bad about being a royal?!

He tossed aside the last curtain, to see that his beloved daughter, currently in her half-cat form, had beaten him to the curtain that would open up to the throne room. She looked up at him; a flicker of annoyance present in her gaze.

"What took you so long?" she asked pointedly as he approached her; a bit of pride welling up over what a beautiful bride she was. Just like her mother.

"Just thinking, babe." Roughly, he hugged her, messing up the veil a bit. The princess blew off the servants' protests, fixing the veil herself.

"What about?"

Her father chuckled a bit.

"That there really was a human that would willingly marry a Cat Princess, and renounce his former life for it."

Haru smiled grimly, and faced the curtain as a familiar song began to play.

"You remember the bet we made on that, right?"

He sighed.

"Yes, Haru. We had a contract on it. I'll make the announcement saying that the royal family can marry cats if they wish to after the wedding."

His heir beamed, and made to accept her father's offered arm. Suddenly, for no reason, she hesitated. The Cat King cocked his head at her.

"Is something wrong?"

Haru shook her head slowly, and bit her lip nervously.

"Father? I want you to remember something, no matter what."

The longhair nodded, giving her permission to speak. His daughter took a deep breath for courage.

"I love you, Father. There are a lot of things that we'll always disagree on, and we'll probably never stop fighting over them, but I want you to know that I love you, even if you're impossible to get along with."

Something strange happened to the king then. The words he had craved for so long were finally granted, even if it wasn't by one of his wives. Wordlessly, the Cat King hugged his daughter one more time, delaying the wedding as the music faltered, since the two had missed their cue.

The feline monarch came to himself, and offered his arm again. This time, Haru took it. Swelling up with pride, the king beamed smugly as he and his heir took slow measured steps down the aisle, and towards the slightly worried young man awaiting them with a priest.

Baron's eyes were locked on his bride, a soft smile on his lips. Haru's in turn were locked on her groom, who looked quite dashing in a white suit. As the king reached forward to close their hands together, he suddenly felt a strong surge of reluctance.

This beautiful young woman had always been his little kitten. After today, she would no longer be his alone.

The brunette looked up at her father; her gaze very much like a controlled warning. The king sighed, wondering how she had gotten so good at threatening people without words, and clasped the hands together before he got any second thoughts. Quickly, he set himself in one of the pews, and watched the wedding commence in an orderly fashion.

It was unlike any he had seen before, at least in the Cat Kingdom. For one, the royal mate wasn't being held in place by any guards, and he was holding the princess's hand like he had no intention of ever letting go. The traditional wedding toast the couple took was quite willing on both sides, with the princess taking the first sip, and then offering the next to her betrothed, as the priest rambled on about the sanctity of the marriage vows. The speech was pretty short, since there was usually one of the party trying to escape before the priest concluded the ceremony.

Baron set aside the golden goblet, and looked deep into Haru's eyes as the elderly priest gave them leave to solidify the marriage contract with a kiss. The princess enthusiastically threw her arms around her love's neck, and firmly pressed her lips against his as he wrapped his strong arms around her slender body, obviously returning the kiss in full.

The throne room erupted into a thunderous applause as the Cat King began bawling like a baby.

'_My baby's gotten married! I thought I was ready for this!'_

Judging from the way Haru was kissing her new husband, she had been more than ready for a long time. It was so strange, that she wouldn't mind having a prince consort a few years younger than her, but at least this meant that grandkittens were in the nearby future.

Suddenly, the feline monarch noticed a piercing glare directed somewhere to the left of him. Looking over, he bit back a groan.

It was Naoko's parents; he didn't need an introduction to know that. They were clapping for their granddaughter's happiness, but the looks they were giving him were saying loud and clear that they really wanted to attend his funeral in the near future. He gulped nervously, and looked away, strangely feeling comforted by the fact that his guards would be able to defend him against the old couple.

But wait a minute. That pew had been covered with humans. He snuck another peak. Machida was there, with his arm around an extremely attractive blonde; an older man seated on the other side of the golden beauty.

He was quite obviously Baron's father, since he just looked like an older version of his new son-in-law. His gaze wasn't the fierce hatred of the royal's in laws, and it wasn't the naked fear of the dark youth, either. More, it was a careful calculation, like the human was measuring the king up for something unknown.


	11. A King Dethroned

Extra

Chapter Eleven: A King Dethroned

Determined not to worry about such a thing on his girl's special day, the Cat King faced the front again, just in time to see his daughter end the kiss; her eyes sparkling magically. Smiling a little foolishly, the princess turned to the congregation as the applause died down.

"I know what you're all thinking," she informed them, smiling mischievously. "I should have gotten married a while ago."

There was some good-natured laughter, as the princess's single status had been a favorite topic for many years. She smiled indulgently, and whistled twice. A servant immediately approached the princess, bearing a silver sword with amethysts on the hilt as another servant approached the king with a matching sword.

The king's heart stopped, since the twin blades were only used for one purpose. He glanced up at his daughter, as she accepted the ancient family weapon.

"Come on, Haru; it's your wedding day, for crying out loud! Don't you even want to wait until after the honeymoon?"

"No, Father," Haru said softly, holding her weapon ready. "Part of my marriage negotiations with Baron's father stated that I would immediately challenge you for the throne. Take your weapon now, before I strike."

Feeling a little flustered, the Cat King took up the family sword. Again, he looked over at Baron's father as all the wedding attendants began to clear out of the center of the room, to give the two royals enough room for the battle.

"Why should you care when my girl becomes queen, babe?"

The man flinched; his eyes turning angry as he held his own daughter close.

"I want to see you repaid for what you did to Naoko."

The king scoffed.

"I gave her a crown; what's so bad about that? Wait; why would you care about my late wife?"

The gold and gray haired man glared even harder.

"I care about her because she would have been mine if you hadn't stolen her."

At first, the king didn't quite understand. He blinked once or twice. As slow as eternity, memories began to resurface.

"… _I miss being with a real gentleman."_

"_I had someone in the human world, you know. Someone much better than a king."_

"_I'd rather be with the man I love than have a thousand crowns. Why did you have to take me away from him?"_

"_Always remember, Haru; despite what your father says, it's more important to find a Mr. Charming than a Prince Charming. And when you find him, promise me that you'll never let him go."_

"_I promise, Mommy."_

Then it clicked. The king's mismatched eyes contracted into slits as an unholy hiss escaped his throat. No wonder the name 'von Gikkingen' sounded so familiar.

"_Cornelius!_" He raised his weapon, and began to charge not at his daughter, but at the human that his wife refused to stop talking about, even until the day she finally died. The blonde beauty gasped as her father pushed her into Machida's arms, but the king's daughter intercepted the madman, and raised her own blade to meet his before the king could harm his rival.

"I am your opponent, Father. No one else." With a heave she sent him back a few feet, but the king wasn't about to be deterred from his goal. He landed on his hind paws, and raised his blade once more.

"Stay out of this, Haru! I have a score to settle with _Cornelius_!" The Cat King tried to attack the human again, but his daughter stood firmly between him and his goal, starting with a standard stabbing attack that forced the feline monarch to his guard to deflect the blows.

"What score?! You're the one that ended up with Mom!"

"Yeah, but if it weren't for that guy, we could have had a happy marriage!"

The Cat Princess snorted indelicately as she struggled to contain her explosive emotions.

"If you hadn't stolen Mom, she would have had one, Father! You have no one to blame but yourself for taking a girl that already had a sweetheart!"

The king became even more infuriated, and began attacking his daughter, who smoothly dodged each blow with a practiced motion.

"We've been through this, babe! I gave her more than _he _could ever have given her!"

"No, you didn't! Whenever Mom wanted something, she would go to anyone in the kingdom besides you to actually get it! You never gave a care about what she wanted, except for the few times they were the same as what you wanted!"

The king roared as he took a swipe at his daughter, missing her easily by a mile.

"What are you trying to say; that you didn't want to be born?!"

The princess fiercely swept the king's legs out from underneath him, making the king fall on his back and then roll away.

"I never wanted to be born under the conditions that I was! I didn't want Mom to regret that I was born, and I never wanted to be here because what you wanted was apparently more important than what everyone else wants!" With tears running down her carefully made-up face, she started taking swipes at her father again.

"The mark of a true leader is one that's willing to sacrifice something he or she wants for the good of the people! There's so much more to being a royal than getting your own way all the time!"

The two duelists had taken a few steps away from each other to breath for half a second, and then rushed together again.

"You said you loved me!" the king howled as he brought the blade down on his beloved daughter, who brought her own blade up to meet his. Once their blades clashed, the princess did a fancy jump into the air, and landed on her feet. The king turned again to make another pass, but his girl, now a good fifty feet away from him, was still kneeling on the ground, facing away from him with the sword still in one fist.

"I _do _love you, Father. No matter how many rotten or selfish things you do, I'll always love you. But I am _through_ with standing aside and letting people suffer because of your actions."

With that, all of the king's fur fell off his body without warning. The king, suddenly feeling colder than he could ever remember feeling, dropped his weapon in order to cover himself up. His daughter slowly stood up and turned to face him; her sword's tip pointed to the ground. She raised her other hand, so that her father could see a glimmering purple gem in her fist. The king gasped, and felt his bare forehead. The princess smiled sadly.

"Someone needs to fix the mistakes you and our forefathers have made. And it might as well be me."

Haru firmly pressed the crown to her forehead; a pupil appearing in the middle of it to match her other ones, the signal that the crown was accepting her as the new Cat Queen.

There was a thunderous applause from everyone in the throne room; the sound carrying throughout the castle and the kingdom that no longer had to live in fear of its monarch.

The king turned red with embarrassment as his daughter stole the white tablecloth in front of the priest in order to wrap it around her father.

"I've taken the liberty of securing a nice quiet estate for you out in the country, Father. That way, no one will be around to laugh at your appearance while your fur's growing back."

"How considerate," he said softly, gripping the tablecloth while looking at his new son-in-law. _'I should have known. Baron looks exactly the way Naoko described her old boyfriend.'_

Haru smiled once more, and kissed her father's cheek.

"Natori, I don't think my father will be up to celebrating right now. Why don't you take him to his new home?"

The advisor nodded numbly, and helped his monarch to his paws as the new queen addressed the cowering felines.

"Let's adjourn to the banquet hall, shall we?"

This announcement was greeted with much enthusiasm as the cats began to filter out of the room. Haru stole one more hug from her father before allowing her grandparents to sweep her into their arms.

"Honey; that was _fantastic_!" her grandmother gushed proudly, kissing the girl's cheek as her grandfather mussed her hair up a bit.

"Sorry to say this, sweetheart, but that crown's a little creepy."

The Cat Queen shrugged; the third eye rolling with her regular ones.

"I know. I just need to deal with it. Shall we, Baron?"

Her husband nodded, his own eyes glowing with admiration as he offered her his arm. As the royal couple walked out of the room, the Prince Consort glanced back at his sire.

"Was that roughly what you had in mind, Father?"

The middle-aged man bit back a laugh as the servants started sweeping up the pile of lavender fur; the ex-Cat King leaving by another exit with his tail between his legs in humiliation; still holding the tablecloth to himself like a blanket.

"I'd have liked to see some blood, personally, but the complete shaving was a nice touch. Thank you for doing that, Haru."

The Cat Queen smiled warmly for her father in law, and tightened her grip on the man she would share the rest of her life with.

'_I kept my promise to you, Mom. I found a Mr. Charming, and I'll __**never**__ let him go.'_

A beautiful warmth flooded the brunette's body almost like music. Without warning, Haru started to cry, but unlike the tears she had cried her entire life, these weren't from sorrow. Baron stopped walking in order to brush the tears away with his gloved hand; the last reminder of his true species.

"What's wrong, love?" he asked softly, wondering if she was regretting what she had done to her father, after all. She beamed up at him, and wrapped her arms around his chest for comfort.

"Call me crazy, but I could have sworn that I felt Mom's approval of you just now."

Almost like a dream, a light breeze fell across the Cat Queen's cheek, just like a loving kiss.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Lots of love to; Drifting One, Bibishi Kuronecko787, Lanari, Lunarobi Pride, QuickStar, kittydemon18, EarthGurdian, and Muu-chan for the thought-provoking reviews.

I know, I know; people wanted me to have Cornelius beat up the Cat King, but it felt more appropriate for Haru to do it. I hope you like my twist on his punishment, and that you'll like the next story even more.

YarningChick

PS; if anyone DOES make a convincing sketch of Baron on a motorcycle, please let me know!


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